The majority of the Museum’s silver and metalware collections, including jewellery and automata, was previously in store. The innovative design of this gallery allows a vast amount of previously unseen pieces, along with some well known favourites, to be displayed to best advantage.

Some of the finest and most famous craftsmen, including Paul Storr, are represented alongside figurative bronzes, clocks, watches and tableware, with items inventively displayed to create novel tableaux such as a coin cascade and unusual table settings. The Joseph Collection of porcelain boxes, formerly on loan to the Gilbert Collection at Somerset House, is also on show.

There is little natural light in the gallery, so state-of-the-art lighting effects have been used to provide an atmosphere and highlight the exhibits. The focused lighting picks out objects to maximise their gleam, while mirrors and other reflective surfaces have been used to create a glowing, sparkling environment.

A special feature is enhanced interpretation and display of the Museum’s two famous automata – a mechanical gold mouse of 1818, and the internationally famous Silver Swan. A multi-media interactive facility will allow visitors to investigate the Swan’s history and its amazing 235-year-old mechanism.